I have been teaching for a few short years now and I gain experience in my profession each and every day. There are many skills one must acquire to be a master educator, one of them being the ability to discipline learners. This skill, I feel, is amongst the most important of all. There's no point in being a brilliant teacher whilst you can't teach because of the chaos in your class. This is an aspect that I am still struggling with right now.
There are different discipline methods out there but none really apply to the South African context. Black township students are raised differently than white children and those living in the suburbs. These methods are westernised. Some people will argue that a child is a child regardless of their background; that a one size fits method will work on all children. This couldn't be further from the truth. A child's background speaks volumes when trying to figure the student out.
We suppose to have a team, a committee in place at work that assists struggling teachers with what ever they need assistance with. I've heard mentions of this team but I've never seen it. I know the teachers who suppose to form part of it but they aren't very much helpful. Most of the time teachers are on their own and forced to figure things out for themselves in situations like these. It can be quite frustrating at times.
There is this teacher at my work who is the "authority" in the school. All the learners fear and respect him. He is in his early sixties and set to retire soon. I admire him greatly. He has a teaching style that is so interactive, funny and captivating. His learners enjoy his classes very much. But at the same time he doesn't take any nonsense from a child. He is truly a disciplinarian, the old school kind. He reminds me of my grandmother actually. Although I admire his way of discipline, that is just not me. I can't do what he does. I just have to find my own way.
Like I stated above at the beginning of this post, I am still young in this profession. Everyday I grow wiser and stronger. I may not know how to combat this issue presently but experience is a great teacher. I will figure it out.